To the Sound of Drums
by Raetrii
Summary: In a world where the Hero of Time failed, Hyrule has been reduced to a desert wasteland. Hylian survivors lead a hard life, the Sheikah and the Gerudo the dominate races. In this land, both the Hero and the Dark King have been reincarnated, and live together as brothers, until they begin to uncover the secrets of the past...


**A/N: **weeell, here's a little au i've been working on for a while! it's an idea i've been toying with and one i've really fallen in love with. it's taking me a while to write, though, as i have to keep refining things and my characterization and whatnot– it's really fun, however, and i'm enjoying it a lot c: i just hope you'll all like it as much as i do.

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**Chapter One: To Walk a Desert **

A tanned hand rose to wipe sweat from blue eyes, a tongue flickering out in a futile attempt to wet cracked lips. It had been too long since Link had tasted water, and his body was oh-so kindly reminding him of that fact: his head felt as if it were stuffed full of cotton, making thinking _much_ harder than it normally was. Still, not much could be done about that at the moment. Water supplies were running low, and who knew when he and his companion would stumble upon the next oasis?

A slow breath was let out, the blond pausing at the top of a sand-dune to cast a glance back at his dear friend, and travelling companion. "How're you doing?" Link asked, blue eyes meeting golden as a blond brow arched. "Holding up all right?"

Though Ganondorf's features were concealed by a cowl, much like Link's were, the blond could tell that his friend was grinning by the way golden eyes crinkled. "Better than you are," came the rather teasing response.

Link rolled his eyes, a hand tugging the dusty fabric of his cowl up over his mouth and nose. Still, a smile curved his cracked lips as he shook his head. "How much farther d'you think?" he asked, changing the topic. "Can we make it today?"

"That depends," Ganondorf began, coming to a halt beside his friend, "on whether or not you shut up and keeping walking." His tone was light, almost teasing, though he made a good point. Link grumbled something inaudible in response, raising a hand to swat at Ganondorf's head. "It's true," the redhead maintained, beginning to walk again.

Link, huffing, trotted after his friend, sandalled feet kicking up little whorls of sand. He didn't say anything more, though – even one as talkative as him knew that when the water supply was running low, it was best to not talk _too _much. Talking wasted moisture, and that meant that one would get thirstier faster, which, even at the best of times, wasn't a good thing in the desert.

It was a while before the two of them stopped to rest, sitting at the bottom of a sand dune. Link dropped to the ground, pack and weapon falling beside him. Lying on his back, an arm was draped over his eyes as he breathed deeply, feeling sweat causing his clothing to stick to him. Right now, he was wishing for even a little bit of shade to alleviate the dreadful heat that seemed to leach the water from everything. However, there was very little shade _anywhere _at the moment, let alone here, out in the middle of the desert of all places.

He felt a hand prodding at his stomach, and, with a groan, the lithe young man pushed himself upright, cowl slipping down as he did so. Wordlessly, a water-skin was offered to him, and Link took it rather gratefully. Water was something to be treasured, as he had been taught from a young age. It was not to be wasted; every drop of it was precious, and should be treated as such.

A single mouthful: that was all that he allowed himself. Maybe, if he drank it slowly, he could trick his body into thinking it was more than it really was– That, of course, was a dumb idea, but hey. What could he say? It was some foolish trick that made the water last a little longer.

"We don't have much left," Ganondorf stated, his tone serious. "We should have enough to get us there, but if there's no water there..."

He didn't have to finish his thought. Link knew what would happen if they didn't find water: it was always a constant threat in this dry land. There was always the constant worry of running out of water, of not having enough for everyone, of not reaching the next oasis in time... Some people had settled in small encampments close some oasis, building little 'towns', but when the water ran out, those places were abandoned, and the people moved on. There were only two 'real' towns left, run by the Sheikah and the Gerudo respectively. That was where people would go to get some food, animals, and the like. All those things, however, mainly came from other countries that were willing to trade with this desert wasteland: The land here was not suited for growing much of anything any more.

"I'm sure there'll be water there," Link said, voice touched with a steady resolve. "I'm sure of it." (That, however, was a lie, and Link had never been good at lying.)

"...If you say so." Ganondorf sounded a little dubious, and Link knew that he didn't believe that they'd find water. Was he regretting coming with Link on this little adventure? It had been something that the two of them had decided to do without much planning – that Link had done on a whim, really. He had found an old map when they had stopped off at one of the smaller encampments scattered about to get supplies and water, and, by some miracle, he had managed to talk Ganondorf into going to one of the places on it with him. The map said it had been a town at one point, and, after some careful studying, they had been able to figure out whereabouts it would be.

The journey had taken several days – longer than either of them had anticipated. That was why they were running low on water, honestly; they hadn't thought the distance would be _near_ this far, and yet here they were with very little of the precious substance left and no idea when (or where) they would be able to get more. Still, Link thought it would be worth it – at least, he hoped it would be. He was very grateful that his dear friend had been willing to accompany him this far out...

His more _sardonic _side said at least if he died out here, he wouldn't die alone.

There was a comfortable silence for a while, Link daring to take another swig of water. They couldn't rest much longer, he knew: they needed to keep moving, even if the day was brutally hot. However, just as he was about to voice this thought, Ganondorf spoke, his tone a pensive one. "Not a lot of people come out this far, you do realise."

Link's turned to look at the redhead, the other young man's cowl lowered, revealing youthful features. Ganondorf was a year or two Link's senior, and thus was still relatively young – not yet in his twenties. "They don't? Why not?"

"People say it's bad luck. Things happened out here in the past– Dark things." Ganondorf's voice was quiet, and even in the harsh heat of the day, Link shivered. Normally, Ganondorf was as light-hearted as he himself was, making jokes or teasing the younger male, but every now and again, a more serious side would sometimes show itself.

Link didn't say anything for a moment, instead staring down at the water-skin he held in his hands. Something like that shouldn't unnerve him, but for some reason, he found himself suddenly on edge. Maybe it was because of who was telling it to him: he was, after all, more likely to believe someone that he thought of as a friend – no, as _family_ – over a complete stranger.

However, steeling himself, blue eyes rose to examine his friend's darker features, the blond tilted his head to the side. "...Things like that are just _ghost stories_. I bet there's some kind of treasure or somethin' out there that people don't want others to get, so they spread stories to keep people away."

Ganondorf raised a dark brow, but after a moment, a quiet chuckle escaped him. "You're probably right."

Link reluctantly handed the water-skin back to Ganondorf, then, pushing himself upright, staggered to his feet. Stretching, he arched his back, staring up at the endless expanse of blue sky. There was, as usual, not a cloud in sight; instead, there was only the golden sun beating down on the earth below, causing heat-waves to shimmer in the dry air.

As his gaze dropped, Link squinted. He thought that, through the hazy heat of the day, he could make out some dark mass in the distance. It seemed to stand out in stark contrast to the golden sand that extended forever in all directions. Could that be it–?

"Hey–" Link nudged his brother, as he thought of Ganondorf more often than not. "Look! I think I see it!" The excitable blond gestured as he spoke, pointing to the dark mass that seemed to rise from the sand-dunes, stone (or what appeared to be such) arching up from the ground into the sky.

Ganondorf's eyes narrowed for a moment as he followed Link's gaze, golden eyes lighting up after a moment. "I think we can reach it today," he announced, his tone touched with excitement. Link wondered if it really had been his constant begging that had gotten Ganondorf to agree to come out here with him, or if the redhead had really been as curious as he himself was.

Several hours later, just as dusk was starting to fall, two duo were finally quite close to their destination. They were standing outside of what once might have been impressive walls, but now was nothing more than crumbling ruins. Said walls had, in the distant past, most likely protected the now-ruined town that they'd come to explore, Link thought. Now, however, they were rather redundant. There was nothing left to protect, and anyway, there were massive holes in the once-sturdy walls. Even the place where a drawbridge, or at least some kind of massive gate used to stand, was now empty, looking quite akin to the gaping mouth of some great beast.

"This place must've been _beautiful _at some time in the past," Ganondorf mused, slowly starting to move forward, a dark hand reaching out to touch the crumbling stones of the old wall. "Shame that it's in ruins now."

Link nodded mutely, blue eyes wide as he stared about. This place was– It wasn't like anything he'd ever seen before. He'd never seen walls this tall, even _crumbling_, nor had he ever seen ruins this _large. _He hadn't expected them to stretch on into the distance like this; he'd thought that they'd be relatively small. The map had said 'town', after all, and in his head, a town wasn't anywhere near _this_ large. Towns didn't really have stones, either: if they did, it was carved into a cliff, not standing by itself like this. Towns had tents, and they didn't have walls, like this, either: the walls were smaller, and they were simply to keep animals in.

"You coming, Link?"

The familiar call pulled Link from his thoughts, his head snapping in the direction of Ganondorf's voice. "Y-yeah," he responded, loose clothing rustling as he hurried to catch up with the older male.

Passing underneath the arching wall made Link shudder. For some reason he couldn't name, apprehension had settled over him: there was something about the very air of the place that set him on edge. It felt... It felt _wrong _to him, though he wasn't certain why. Maybe it was because everything seemed so _dea_d – it felt like a burial ground, almost. That, combined with the fact that the eerie stillness of the place, made his skin crawl. At least there was shade here, he supposed, though it felt almost unnatural.

The air of the place made him hesitant to speak; it felt as if he spoke, he might make something – he wasn't sure what – shatter. Even his footfalls, muffled by shifting sand, sounded too loud to his ears. There were buildings on either side of him – or, at least, ruins that used to be buildings – and he kept expecting _something _to jump out at him. It made him quite nervous, and he didn't know what to do with himself; should he draw his weapon? Should he–

"You all right?" Ganondorf's voice sounded too loud, and Link resisted the urge to shush the bigger male. "You seem tense."

"Doesn't the air feel... _wrong_ to you?" Link asked, shifting his weight almost nervously and fighting the need to reach for the curved sword that was strapped to his hip. "I don't like it."

Ganondorf examined the blond for a moment, brow furrowing. "I don't know what you're talking about," the redhead stated honestly. "It seems fine to me, if a bit chiller – though, that could be because of the walls." A careless gesture was made towards the aforementioned stone structures towering above them – even ancient and crumbling, they still had an amazing height. They were blocking the sun out, bringing some relief from the heat of the sun.

"Y-yeah... That might be it." Link, however, wasn't so certain.

The two young men carried on, the only sound their breathing and the rustling of their loose-fitting clothing. Link was hesitant to speak, which, Ganondorf had remarked rather idly, was a miracle in and of itself, but it did make conversation difficult. While the smaller young man was tense, Ganondorf seemed perfectly at – the strange air of the place didn't seem to bother him.

After a while, the duo found another gate – or rather, what used to be on, by Link's guess. It was now in ruins, only portions of it still standing, leaving one to guess what it might have looked like in its former glory. This one was shielded on both sides by a towering cliffs: the pathway was dark, almost gloomy, despite the fact that the golden sun was blazing down. Link would normally have welcomed the shade, but right now, it only added onto his feeling of apprehension.

"If I was going to build a stronghold," Ganondorf announced, "I'd do it somewhere around here."

Link shot his friend a quizzical look, his fear momentarily forgotten as he attempted to puzzle out what Ganondorf meant.

"You know," the redhead carried on, "the cliffs make it easier to defend, and it's on a hill – it's easier to defend that way. I could see everything around me."

Link sighed, though a smile tugged at his lips. "How do you know things like that?"

"Easy. While you nap, I pay attention to what's going on around me. And that, my dear brother, is why I shall go farther in life than you."

Carefully stepping over the pile of rubble, which had been covered partially by sand, the duo carried on. Link realised that Ganondorf _was _right: they were currently going uphill. "So, what d'you think's up here?" Link asked, attempting to distract himself from the apprehension that still clung to him.

"Dunno. Maybe more of the town?"

"I don't think so. There's nothing built here..."

"Castle, then. Or some big house, at least." Ganondorf shrugged, his tone light. "Maybe there's _treasure_."

"You think?"

Ten minutes later served to show Link that Ganondorf had been right with his last guess: there, not too far away, ruins of what had obviously once been some stately castle arched up from the ground, turrets and great walls still visible, though great holes gaped in the sides of the structure like wounds on some huge animal. It was almost sad, Link thought, and a certain melancholy feeling settled over him, though he couldn't quite figure out why.

Through an unspoken agreement, the two young men hurried towards the crumbling castle. Perhaps it wasn't entirely safe, but then again: what else were they supposed to do? They'd come all the way out here, and thus they would explore the place, even if it wasn't advisable (then again, since when had the two young men listened to common sense?).

"Water!" Link's voice pierced the silence, sounding far too loud. At the moment, however, he didn't care: running around the base of the castle was a small stream of some sort. The blond skidded to a halt, and Ganondorf paused beside him, the two of them scrambling down the sandy banks to get to the water.

Filling their water-skins, Link grinned at Ganondorf. "_Told _you there'd be water."

Having drunk their fill, the two of them moved once again to stand before what obviously used to be the entrance to the towering castle. It seemed almost _ominous _to Link, and he shivered despite the heat of the day. Why should he be afraid of some old, long forgotten castle? Why should he be so hesitant to enter it? The feeling of apprehension that had plagued him in the ruined town settled over him again, and he drew a long breath.

"Want to look inside it?" Link's customary smile slipped into place, and he shifted slightly to catch Ganondorf's eye. "I bet there's probably some _really_ interesting things in there."

A dark brow was arched, though Link could tell that Ganondorf wanted to explore the castle as much as he did. He hadn't been friends with the young Gerudo for years without having picked up on his body language: he could tell from the very way that Ganondorf stood, weight on the balls of his feet, golden eyes bright in the dusk light. Night would soon fall, but they still had a bit of light left before that happened. They could at least _start _exploring, yes: it would be enough to sate at least sate some of their boundless curiosity.

And so, it was with careful steps that Ganondorf began to lead the way into the old, stone castle, Link trotting along behind him.

_To be continued. _


End file.
